Your 2024 MLB Home Run Derby champion is Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, who edged out Kansas City Royals phenom Bobby Witt Jr. in a thriller at Globe Life Field on Monday night.
This year’s Derby had a new format – the top four advanced to the semifinals then the usual head-to-head matchups came out.
Hernandez managed to belt 14 homers in his final round, and he had to sit back and watch as Witt came up with the chance to either tie him or walk it off.
Witt made it to the bonus round with 11 home runs, needing three to tie Hernandez and four to walk it off for the victory.
With one out remaining and only one home run needed for the tie, Witt launched one 102 mph off the bat with a good angle to center field.
However, his hit was to the deepest part of the ballpark and smacked the wall, needing only a few more feet to get out.
Hernandez – watching the whole way as the ball was flying through the air – celebrated the second he saw it stay inside.
At 31 years old, Hernandez is the oldest player to win the Home Run Derby since David Ortiz did it at 34 in 2010.
Hernandez, who is tied for 14th in the MLB with 19 homers on the season thus far, has been wanting to participate in this sacred All-Star weekend festivity for quite some time, and with the help of his former Toronto Blue Jays teammate Vladimir Guerrero Jr., he got the victory.
The semifinal matchup between Hernandez and Philadelphia Phillies star Alec Bohm was electric, as it came down to a swing-off, where each hitter had just three swings to add to their 14-home run total.
Hernandez, being the lower seed, went first and mashed two homers out of his three swings. Bohm, who had a chance to reach the championship round with just one homer in his bonus round but couldn’t get it done, hit only one in three swings to lose.
This swing-off may not have happened if Bohm’s final swing of his semifinal round didn’t go foul, as it certainly had the distance but didn’t stay inside the left field foul pole.
Witt had an easier semifinal, as he defeated Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez, 17-12. He had some time to refresh while Bohm and Hernandez battled at the plate.
Pete Alonso, the New York Mets slugger who was going for his third career Home Run Derby title in his fifth straight appearance, couldn’t make it out of the first round in this new format that only saw the top four advance.
Baltimore Orioles phenom Gunnar Henderson had the lowest number with 11 homers in the first round, while Atlanta Braves veteran slugger Marcell Ozuna and hometown favorite Adolis Garcia also failed to move on.
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